Jazmee27 
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She began by rubbing this solution over the young man’s eyes, and his cries of agony were terrible indeed. I don’t know what was in it, and I don’t care to know. It’s enough that my nights are filled with the screams of the young man as she dabbed at first one area, then another, inserting the scalpel after “cleaning” each spot. By now I was rooted to the spot, no longer able to even move. A few times, Aleksandr snapped at me because I wouldn’t give him something, but for the most part he bent over the patient, working steadily. Red geysers were shooting everywhere, but neither he nor Silvia seemed to care. Each was engrossed in his or her own work.
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Reply #1241. Jun 26 12, 4:08 PM
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Jazmee27
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======
At one point, I made the mistake of glancing over at the table. The young man’s eyes were gone, empty sockets oozing blood and pus in a torrent. His hands clutched the sides of the table, and his lips were pursed in a vain attempt to keep in the sounds of anguish erupting from inside his tortured frame. His legs were now fastened to the table as well so he couldn’t kick out at the man castrating him. A pervasive sadness filled me as tears flowed down my cheeks. Initially, I tried to blink them back, afraid either of the demons would notice, but I gave in to defeat and quit trying after a bit. Besides, even if one or both said something, so what? I was just another human, sobbing over the mistreatment of one of my own. I let the tears fall as Silvia moved on to the oung man’s ears, then looked to her boss. “Now what,” she asked. My gaze flew to the Surgeon, his hands and arms covered in the young man’s blood. I winced, noticing he was still bleeding profusely from that region. Surgeon went over to the sink, washed up, and then said they’d done enough for today. The boy’s body needed to rest, he said, in order for the next phase of the plan to be put in place. Again, I felt that terror take hold, but something else, too, a determination to, somehow, protect the boy from further agony.
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Reply #1242. Jun 26 12, 4:10 PM
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Jazmee27
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AS I WAS READING THAT LAST, I REMEMBERED WITH STUNNING CLARITY THE DAY I WROTE THAT. I WON'T GIVE THE INSPIRATION AWAY, JUST THAT, ONCE AGAIN, MY READING IMPACTED WHAT I WROTE ABOUT.
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Reply #1243. Jun 26 12, 4:12 PM
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Jazmee27
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THE EXECUTION
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- Taken from the journal of Brendyn Gonzales
I wouldn’t have done it if I hadn’t thought it would help. I mean, why would I? Put myself at risk for no reason? What sense does that make? None, that’s what. Unfortunately, as will soon be revealed, my intentions didn’t work out as planned.
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Reply #1244. Jun 26 12, 4:14 PM
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Jazmee27
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See, I have two brothers, Ontario and Alonso, who are twins separated by a few hours. The way it worked out, Ontario was born the night of one day and Alonso the next afternoon. Our mother struggled to give birth to him, and died in the process. The good news is Alonso’s healthy. The bad news is, I kind of blamed him for taking mama away from us. Oh, sure, part of me knew it wasn’t his fault, and even placed the blame where it belonged – with the Dark – but I didn’t realize how important he was to me until the day papa was dragged away to be executed.
I’ve tried to record everything to the best of my knowledge. I fully admit that I likely don’t have the whole story. All I can do is share what I’ve found. Why I’m writing this account, I don’t exactly know. Hopefully, it’ll help in some way I cannot quite see. At the very least, if he reads this, he’ll understand my actions were prompted by a desire, albeit misplaced, to protect those I loved in whatever way I could. Like I said, I couldn’t have known I’d be putting myself in danger as a result.
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Reply #1245. Jun 26 12, 4:15 PM
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Jazmee27
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======
- From the Archives
THE SERVANT
I’m called Somahri Javiteya. Have a half brother I barely know by name of Xiveydo.
Began work in palace today. Regular day, no clouds, lots of sun. Nice breeze now and then.
No expectation for work. Nervous flutter in stomach. Loads of unanswered questions. Serve no purpose.
THE KING
I’m told the hired help starts today. I wonder, vaguely, what he’ll be like. Will we get along? How about the children? Thinking of them always makes me sad. They’ve already been through so much, and they’re so young. I wish I could do something to make their lives easier.
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Reply #1246. Jun 26 12, 4:16 PM
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Jazmee27
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======
Just as I’m thinking this, I hear a loud rap at the door and go to answer it. Standing there, his eyes shifting around nervously, is my brother-in-law. “Orseviyto,” I exclaim, “what are you doing here?”
“We need to talk,” he tells me tersely.
“Can’t this wait,” I demand, explaining I’m waiting for my servant to arrive.
“Afraid not,” he says apologetically.
“Come on in, then,” I said as I stepped back to allow him in the room.
“You’re in danger,” were the first words out of his mouth after he’d finished searching the area with his eyes.
“So I gathered from your behavior,” I snapped, throwing myself down in a chair opposite.
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Reply #1247. Jun 26 12, 4:16 PM
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Jazmee27
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THE ABDUCTION 1
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The toddler was cursed with a boundless curiosity that caused him to wander away from his loved ones at the most crucial of moments. It being one of those stiflingly hot days, his parents didn’t even notice right away that he was missing—and by the time either of them did notice, it was already too late.
The Scenorian landscape is full of places where a body can hide if he or she is so inclined. Some such individuals evade detection by the authorities, waiting for the moment when their selected targets are most vulnerable…
As noted above, it was oppressively hot the day in question. The toddler, seeking refuge from the sizzling sun, and lured by the peace of the woodland, wandered further and further away from safety, unaware that he was being followed.
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Reply #1248. Jun 26 12, 4:18 PM
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Jazmee27
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His pursuers were well versed in the art of stealth. Attracting attention was never a good idea—unless, of course, it happened to be the “good” kind of attention. Similarly, they were quite used to gaining peoples’ trust and luring them to their death.
As the day grew hotter and hotter, the two criminals noticed their quarry was becoming more and more tired. He was also frustrated because, cool as it was under the shade, it didn’t last long, and so he was forced to keep moving from place to place in an attempt to find a comfortable place to sit down.
Finally, he found such a spot, and was soon asleep in minutes. Seeing their chance, the two watchers slid out of the shadows and snatched him with no trouble at all. He was, after all, exhausted after roaming all around like that.
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Reply #1249. Jun 26 12, 4:19 PM
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Jazmee27
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His abductors brought him, still sleeping soundly, to a drafty tower-like palace halfway between the kingdoms of Sentoria and Scenoria.
When the boy woke, they reassured him by claiming to be his aunt and uncle. Having never met even half his relatives, he had no way of knowing if this was true or not. All he knew—or thought he knew—was that they were kind people who were looking after him until his family could easily come for him.
After a few days, he didn’t find it strange of one or the other of his “temporary caregivers” was too close, or even that his parents hadn’t arrived to take him home yet. He just didn’t understand that Viktorio’s claim, that they’d been unable to contact his family, was naught but hogwash.
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Reply #1250. Jun 26 12, 4:20 PM
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Jazmee27
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Every night, the little boy—whose name was Ontario—would cry himself to sleep. Also every night, his woman abductor would get up, and go to z”comfort” him. She’d stroke his hair, and murmur soothing words, and before too long Ontario’s wracking sobs would just go away, and he’d be a carefree toddler who was too trusting and too curious for his own good once more.
Then, one day, Ontario knew for certain that something wasn’t quite right. That’s because that morning, the woman had instructed him to lay in a way that he found uncomfortable, and hold it until she said it was OK to move. Meantime, her hands were busy caressing his flesh, tenderly at first, then with increasing roughness. The one and only time he tried to push her probing fingers away, she slapped him so hard she left marks on his sensitive hands. Later, she apologized for having hurt him, but she insisted on fondling him.
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Reply #1251. Jun 26 12, 4:22 PM
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Jazmee27
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======
From that day on, his trusting nature and curiosity were stamped out—as was his innocence. Right after she apologized, for instance, Viktoria pulled him toard her and fit their bodies together. He was too young to understand how she did it, but he knew it made him feel dirty inside. Through it all, though, except for that one time when she backhanded him, the toddler refused to cry. Instead, the shame and humiliation infected every cell of his tiny body, making him sick with fever. And not until his temperature reached the danger zone did she leave him be, letting him slowly waste away.
It was then that her husband, Viktorio, took over. He’d always envied the toddler’s parents, for they were in a position of power. They had a kingdom, and subjects to rule as they saw fit. That they were kind and compassionate individuals meant they didn’t deserve the leadership thrust upon him. The title of monarch belonged to those like Viktorio, who were willing to exploit anything and everything to get what they wanted.
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Reply #1252. Jun 26 12, 4:23 PM
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Jazmee27
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Complicating matters was the jealousy and bitterness he felt at Sevahriano Voliyno, the boy’s father, having married the girl he wanted for himself. Her name was Jasmyna in one language and Qaseydra in another. They’d met once or twice and, when she’d rejected his attentions, he’d ravaged her body, resulting in the birth of her oldest son, Brendyn. Then she’d met *him, and the two had fallen in love, resulting in twins Alonso and Ontario being born. Viktorio’s sole consolation was that the she-devil who’d spurned him was two years dead, succumbing to complications having to do with Alonso’s birth.
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Reply #1253. Jun 26 12, 4:24 PM
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Jazmee27
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He planned his move carefully. A day or so earlier, he’d sent a letter to the toddler’s father naming his one and only condition for the boy’s release. Of course, the fact that he had no intention of being true to his word was of no consequence. What was could be summed up in seven words: **The king hadn’t responded to his *letter. Viktorio was furious, and therefore determined to make the boy—and his father through him—suffer as much agony as possible.
He started by removing the blankets his wife had so tenderly wrapped around Ontario. He didn’t want the toddler to survive this illness, and it stood to reason he would if his wife continued her careful ministrations. And so, he had a “talk” with her, ordering her that **under no *circumstances was she to nurse the kid back to health. There were certain magics they could make good use of which would keep the boy in the land of the living so long as he were needed—but no longer.
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Reply #1254. Jun 26 12, 4:26 PM
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Jazmee27
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She suggested, ever so delicately, that there was more sense in letting the boy live than killing him. “After all, I am to give birth to his child before long.” She then added, with characteristic perceptiveness, that there were far more subtle ways of torturing a body than by slowly draining it of its essence.
But Viktorio wouldn’t be dissuaded from his plan to wrench all the life from this youngster. Viktoria, fearing her husband’s wrath, still persisted in caring for the boy, ensuring he was kept warm at night and that no draft reached his feverish figure.
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Reply #1255. Jun 26 12, 4:27 PM
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Jazmee27
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One night, she found her husband cradling the toddler in one arm and a screwdriver in the other. Ontario’s blood was everywhere, and the smile on Viktorio’s lips was frightening indeed. Seeing this scene, Viktoria waved her arms, knocking the weapon from her husband’s hand, raised to deliver yet another slashing blow, and snatched the toddler from his choking embrace. “It’s too late to save him, you know,” Viktorio sneered as he pointed to the rapidly spreading blood. Her response was that, sure he’d lost a lot of blood, but it was far from too late. “To the contrary,” he replied, adding that the boy’s organs had begun to shut down from the combined shock of having lost so much blood and having battled the fever for so long. “His heart’s already failed and started up again once since I began.”
Her reply was very unladylike, claiming that she was attempting to show him how torment could last for years and years without striking a mortal blow. “But you,” she shrieked, “your problem has always been that you’re so impatient.” So saying, she ran with the room with Ontario’s heavily-bleeding form clutched protectively to her chest.
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Reply #1256. Jun 26 12, 4:30 PM
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Jazmee27
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======
Later that night, she was forced to admit her husband’s last words had been right: no amount of magic in the world could save Ontario from his fate. It was only a matter of time. Of course, there were spells that could *prolong his agonized struggle, and of these she used without scruple. She watched as the days drew into weeks, and the weeks turned to months. Slowly, much more slowly than her husband would have liked, the youngster’s vitals and other organs began to shut down. Twice more, his heart failed, only to be restarted with the correct spell. Each time, it took something away from the boy, until he was just a shell of what he’d once been.
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Reply #1257. Jun 26 12, 4:31 PM
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Jazmee27
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The day his heart stopped for the final time was the day Viktoria’s son, Waryn, took his first breath of life. When Ontario stopped breathing, his tormentors agreed that it was as if Waryn had sucked the remaining life from him in that moment of his birth. “And thus is your objective achieved,” Viktoria told her husband.
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Reply #1258. Jun 26 12, 4:31 PM
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Jazmee27
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THE ABDUCTION 2
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It was one of those extraordinarily hot years that sends people scurrying for the indoors as fast as they can. It’s the kind of year that’s so hot and sticky that people stay to themselves. It’s not that they don’t care; it’s just hard to take an interest in another’s affairs when you’re uncomfortable in your own skin.
That’s what it was like the year the Gonzales boy disappeared, never to be seen again except from the pages of a newspaper.
Where the papers got the photos, I’ll never know. Surely those I’ve discussed the case with don’t.
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Reply #1259. Jun 26 12, 4:32 PM
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Jazmee27
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It was presented, long after the fact, as a cautionary tale: “this could happen to your child, so you’d best be attentive.”
The ruling monarch at the time was named Sevahriano Voliyno to Qiryntians and Ludoviyko Volardi to Scenorians like myself. I felt sorry for him, because he’d lost his wife just shy of two years before. Complications of childbirth, or so the story went. To this day, I still can’t believe it—the queen was a lovely woman, so kind and caring: she’d sit for hours, just listening to people talk, comforting them when necessary, doling out advice when it was asked for, but always being a supportive presence. People loved her, both in Qirynse and Scenoria, because of her wisdom and understanding. That, and how she didn’t discriminate among the races. “A person’s a person,” she was heard to say at one po int. “It doesn’t matter how much Power you have, or where you come from, or what shade your skin. We’re all inhabitants of the same Universe.”
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Reply #1260. Jun 26 12, 4:34 PM
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